Four distinguished med school deans help celebrate expansion of Lipscomb science facilities
Kim Chaudoin | 615.966.6494 |
Lipscomb celebrated the opening of the McFarland Science Center addition on April 15 with a dedication celebration that included many physicians who received their undergraduate science training at the university. Also included among the guests were deans of four of the largest medical schools in the region who helped mark the occasion with a discussion of health care education later in the evening.
The addition to the almost 50-year-old McFarland Science Center, home of Lipscomb's College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, increased its size by more than a third and added six new labs with updated and enhanced equipment to continue growing the school’s highly regarded work in science education.
“Tonight is about a building, but it’s also about much more than a building. It’s a place where students will come to pursue their dreams,” said John Lowry, vice president for development and external affairs.
The facility’s official ribbon cutting took place on the patio outside the $8.5 million Belmont Boulevard facility, ceremonially opening the 24,000-square-foot addition which has been in use since the first of the year.
“Our faculty, staff and students are excited about this new space,” said Norma B. Burgess, dean of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences. “It is my hope that all the work that is done in this building and on this campus be done in the spirit of our faith. Not only are we science, we are the liberal arts. But above all else, we are Lipscomb.”
“The science faculty have dreamed of this day for a long time,” said Lipscomb President L. Randolph Lowry. “And because of the generosity of so many, many of whom are here today, amazing things can happen. Today is the culmination of that hard work and generosity.”
The ground floor of the addition holds two labs: a microbiology lab and a multi-purpose lab, both with new equipment. More than $100,000 has been invested in new microscopes alone.
“We are certainly excited today,” said Kent Gallaher (’91), chair of the department of biology and director of the biomolecular science graduate program. “It’s been a long time in coming. We thank everyone who has helped us realize this dream.”
Two anatomy labs, that serve pre-med and pre-nursing majors, are located on the third floor. According to Gallaher, around 200 students a year must take anatomy labs.
At the dedication ceremony, John Netterville (’51), former chair of Lipscomb’s chemistry department who has one of the six labs named in his honor, shared his gratitude for the new facilities and his lifetime of memories of the university as a student and longtime faculty member. Netterville was one of the drivers behind building the original McFarland, then called Science Hall in the 1960s.
Dr. John Little (’88), an otolaryngologist from Knoxville, Tennessee, and a member of the Lipscomb Board of Trustees, shared thoughts on how Lipscomb science education is changing lives in the present.
He brought with him Cheyenne Roberts, who, at age two, was his first cochlear implant patient in 1998. She shared the impact that Little had on her life because of performing surgery that restored her hearing.
Student Hannah Stephen, who will graduate in May before heading to the Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine program at the University of Georgia this fall, shared how Lipscomb’s science program prepared her to pursue her career goals, especially by giving her an opportunity to work alongside accomplished faculty participating in research.
Five of the new labs have been named for retired Lipscomb science faculty legends: Paul Langford, former chair of chemistry and the pre-medicine committee; the late Oliver Yates, chair of biology; the late David Johnston, distinguished professor of chemistry; the late Ralph Nance, chair of physics; as well as John Netterville, former chair of chemistry. Alumni across the nation made donations to honor these distinguished faculty and help fund the new McFarland labs.
Dr. Jimmy Netterville (’76), co-chair of the McFarland Addition Campaign, son of John Netterville and an otolaryngologist 
and director of head and neck surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said he walked through the halls of this new building and saw labs named for the men “who inspired us to be competent and inspired us to serve God more than anything else. They launched us to create lives that make a difference in the world. These men that we are honoring today in these labs are remarkable people.”
“I know (the science program) will be a lot stronger and more helpful to the students (because of the new facilities),” Langford said of the chemistry lab named in his honor. “When you think of the number of doctors, pharmacists, nurses and dentists who will be trained here in the future, it’s mind-boggling.”
In the two new chemistry labs, individual hoods are larger and transparent, and the organic chemistry lab now includes 13 larger collaborative hoods so students can conduct all experiments at the same time. Both the chemistry and biology labs include new snorkels and overhead movable pipes that allow a student to place air exhaust immediately over the chemical or specimen they are using.
“There is a lot more space, and the lighting is fantastic. They really went all-out on it,” said Abby Newby, a junior dietetics major from Washington. “It is definitely more space to work in, and I like the atmosphere. The fact that they put in big windows to let in natural light makes people a lot happier.”
Following the ribbon cutting, the J.S. Ward Society, an organization open to alumni who majored in the sciences, hosted a leadership dinner followed by a panel conversation on the changes and challenges of health care education in today’s world. Weighing in on the discussion, moderated by Gallaher, were Dr. Jeff Balser, vice chancellor for health affairs and dean of the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine; Dr. David Stern, executive dean of the University of Tennessee’s College of Medicine; Dr. Frederick C. deBeer, dean of the University of Kentucky College of Medicine; and Robert Means, dean of medicine of the Quillen College of Medicine at East Tennessee State University.
The J.S. Ward Society is named for James Samuel Ward, M.D., D.D.S, founding dean of the Lipscomb science department and interim president of Lipscomb in 1905-06 and 1913. He was instrumental in establishing the university’s focus on quality science instruction and an unbroken lineage of medical doctors serving on faculty.
The purpose of the Ward Society is to connect science alumni and friends to Lipscomb in meaningful ways while making a Lipscomb pre-professional health science education accessible to current and future students of promise through a scholarship program.
-- photos by Kristi Jones